Downtown Grand Forks
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Downtown Grand Forks Historic District
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| Location | Downtown Grand Forks, at the Red River of the North, Grand Forks, North Dakota |
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| Coordinates | 47°55′35″N 97°1′51″W / 47.92639°N 97.03083°WCoordinates: 47°55′35″N 97°1′51″W / 47.92639°N 97.03083°W |
| Area | 80.4 acres (32.5 ha) |
| Built | 1872, 1880 and 1885 |
| Architect | Buechner & Orth; et al. |
| Architectural style | Various |
| MPS | Downtown Grand Forks MRA |
| NRHP reference # | 05001475 |
| Added to NRHP | December 28, 2005 |
Downtown Grand Forks is the original commercial center of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Located on the western bank of the Red River of the North, the downtown neighborhood is situated near the fork of the Red River and the Red Lake River. While downtown is no longer the dominant commercial area of the Greater Grand Forks community, it remains the historic center of Grand Forks. An 80.4-acre (32.5 ha) portion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005, as Downtown Grand Forks Historic District. Today, downtown Grand Forks is home to many offices, stores, restaurants, and bars.
Grand Forks was first settled in 1870. In 1872, seven pioneers staked claims to land on the Red River. The 9-acre (36,000 m2) piece of land that would become downtown Grand Forks was first platted by Grand Forks' "founding father", Alexander Griggs, and his wife Etta, in 1875. This was done in anticipation of the Saint Paul and Pacific Railroad (later the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railway and eventually the Great Northern Railway). A collection of wood-frame buildings quickly sprouted up and, by 1880, the new city was home to 1,705 residents. The city was incorporated on February 22, 1881.
The coming of the Saint Paul, Minneapolis, and Manitoba Railway in 1880 led to dramatic growth. New multiple-story brick buildings replaced the old wood structures. The Hotel Dacotah, the St. John's Block, and the Security Building - all five stories - were witness to the fact that the city was prospering and that downtown Grand Forks was becoming one of the busiest commercial districts in the region. By the dawn of the 20th century, downtown Grand Forks had become the commercial, transportation, health care, entertainment, and cultural center of the region and boasted many amenities.
Throughout the early and mid parts of the 20th Century, downtown Grand Forks was easily the dominant commercial neighborhood in Grand Forks. In the later part of the century, the coming of the Interstate Highway System, urban renewal, and new commercial developments on the outskirts of the city signaled the start of a period of decline for downtown. Major shopping malls (South Forks Plaza in 1964 and Columbia Mall in 1978) relocated much of the commercial activity which had once been centered downtown. Over time, institutions which had once been a major part of downtown - the city's hospitals, post office, and public library - were replaced with new facilities outside of downtown.
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